The Korea Exchange (KRX) has decided to waive trading fees for all market participants for a limited period to stimulate trading activity on its platform.
The temporary fee holiday includes trading, clearing and settlement costs on KRX and will last for 43 transaction days, from 1 November to 29 December. The promotion includes all instruments except market making products and KOSPI 200 futures on CME Globex.
Meanwhile, a fee holiday for exchange-traded funds (ETF) will run from 2 January 2012 to 28 December 2012. The ETF promotion will also include trading, clearing and settlement fees, but will exclude leverage and inverse ETFs.
Equity trading volumes at KRX have been erratic this year, reaching US$128.6 billion in October, according to data from Thomson Reuters, having dwindled to US$94.7 billion in February before rising to US$181.09 billion in August.
KRX is also facing the prospect of losing its monopoly following a proposed changed to Korea’s Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act that would see a licence system introduced that would allow new stock exchanges or alternative trading systems to operate in the country.